Photo By Carlos Vega | The Belle of Cincinnati, a 225-foot riverboat built in 1988, is docked for the...... read more read more
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LOUISVILLE, Ky. - The Festival of Riverboats is a festival held to celebrate the history of Ohio’s riverboats. This year's event was highlighted by the 100-year anniversary of the Belle of Louisville, Oct. 14, 2014.
The Coast Guard participated in and provided security for the six-day riverboat festival held at the Waterfront Park near the river’s edge in Louisville, Kentucky.
The event was kicked off by the speeches of several notable guests, which included the Mayor of Louisville, Greg Fischer, Adm. Kevin Cook, commander of the 8th Coast Guard District, Mark Doty and Linda Harris, the captain and CEO of the Belle of Louisville, and festival coordinator Neville Blakemore.
Cook presented a Meritorious Public Service Award to Doty and Harris to commemorate the Belle of Louisville’s 100-years of continuous service as a transportation service.
Festivities began when Fischer and Blakemore used two bottles of Kentucky bourbon to rechristen the Belle of Louisville, which was followed by a parade.
The festival included six historic riverboats, the Belle of Louisville, the Spirit of Jefferson, the Belle of Cincinnati, the Spirit of Peoria, the River Queen and the American Queen.
Activities included riverboat cruises available to the public, riverboat races, parades, fireworks, educational river-themed exhibits and live music.
The Coast Guard Cutter Osage, a 65-foot river buoy tender, which usually can be seen setting, anchoring and maintaining buoys in the inland waterways, was open to the public to give people a feel for life on a Coast Guard river tender.
Members from Coast Guard Sector Ohio Valley and Coast Guard Marine Safety and Security Team from Kings Bay, Georgia, patrolled the riverside and escorted riverboats during the festival using 25-foot response boats to ensure the protection of the public.
In 1871 the Steamboat Inspection Service was created to inspect riverboats. The service would later be integrated with several others to become the Coast Guard. The mission of the Steamboat Inspection Service was to safeguard lives and property at sea, a mission that the Coast Guard still continues to this day.
“While the Coast Guard’s missions and challenges have expanded over the years, our service to the nation’s heartland and the great waterways that have historically defined this region remains steadfast," said Cook.
| Date Taken: | 10.20.2014 |
| Date Posted: | 10.20.2014 12:46 |
| Story ID: | 145493 |
| Location: | LOUISVILLE, KENTUCKY, US |
| Web Views: | 80 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
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